Columbian Exchange • Western Hemisphere agricultural products, such as corn, potatoes, and tobacco, changed European lifestyles. • European horses and cattle changed the lifestyles of American Indians. • European diseases, such as smallpox, killed many American Indians. Impact of the Columbian Exchange • Shortage of labor to grow cash crops led to the use of African slaves. • Slavery was based on race. • European plantation system in the Caribbean and the Americas destroyed indigenous economics and damaged the environment.